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Friends remember 'Saggy' Tahir at memorial service

Adeel Tahir, youngest son of Saghir Tahir, takes a few minutes to watch a slideshow of moments in his father's life before crowds came to the memorial held Saturday. (JAY REITER/Union Leader)

MANCHESTER - Friends and family gathered Saturday to share their memories of the late Saghir Tahir - businessman, philanthropist, political leader and devoted family man - in the city and state he loved.

A memorial gathering for Tahir, 68, who died last month, was held at the Puritan Backroom.

The man everyone knew as "Saggy" was remembered as a self-made man who came to this country from his native Pakistan in 1972 and became a citizen six years later.

Settling in Manchester, he started his own construction consulting business and raised his three children here with his wife Nusrat.

Active in Republican politics, he served in the New Hampshire House of Representatives from 2000 to 2010, one of the first American Muslims elected in the United States.

He also was active in many community organizations, including the Hooksett Community Food Pantry and the Islamic Society of Greater Manchester.